With an 8-3 win over the Kentucky Wildcats in Game 2 of the Baton Rouge Super Regional on Sunday night, LSU clinched a spot at the College World Series in Omaha for the first time since 2017.
Despite the recent drought, this is an LSU program that has become accustomed to making the pilgrimage to Omaha. This will be the 19th overall trip the Tigers have made, but for coach [autotag]Jay Johnson[/autotag], it will be just his third and the first he’s made with LSU.
While the head coach at Arizona, Johnson led the Wildcats to the College World Series final in his first season in 2016, coming up short against tournament Cinderella Coastal Carolina in three games after taking Game 1.
The second trip came in 2021, and it was much less fortuitous for Johnson and the ‘Cats, who exited with an 0-2 record. Johnson is eager to have another shot at a national title.
“It means a lot,” he said, according to On3’s Steve Samra. “It started right after kind of the heartbreak of losing in the College World Series. I mean, the opening game in 2021, we had the lead against Kumar Rocker and Vanderbilt late, and we played great that night. That was a tough loss in extra innings, and then got eliminated by Stanford. Then they approached me and said, ‘What do you think about this?’ Probably wouldn’t have gone anywhere else. … Made this the place. I thought, ‘Wow. What a once in a lifetime, once in a career opportunity, and dream come true.’
“To be a part of this. … I mean, I grew up — I’m 12 years old, I had an LSU baseball hat, in Northern California. Watching the purple jerseys run around Omaha all the time. So to get to coach this team in the College World Series is, I’d have a hard time putting that into words, but it’s pretty special.”
LSU is looking for its first national title since 2009, and now Johnson has a chance to win a national championship with one of the most talented teams in program history.
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